Is Nursing a Profession? Why the New Department of Education Proposal Puts Nursing at Risk

Tamara Ramirez MASF, BSN, RN SD
3 days ago
3 min read

A couple of weeks ago, while scrolling through social media, a headline stopped me cold:

“The U.S. Department of Education has determined that nursing is not a profession.”

My immediate reaction was simple:

This has to be misinformation.

Just online propaganda.

I kept scrolling.

But moments later, I saw the same message — this time posted by the American Nurses Association (ANA). And that’s when I froze.

I felt disbelief wash over me. How could this be happening?

For decades, nurses have fought to be recognized as an independent profession — not as “uneducated doctor assistants,” not as helpers, but as skilled, trained, licensed professionals who carry the weight of patient care on their shoulders.

And now, in 2025, we’re seeing policies that drag us back into outdated definitions from the 1960s.

What the Department of Education Is Proposing

The Department of Education is considering using decades-old criteria to determine which degrees are “professional” or “graduate” programs. These definitions would directly affect federal student loan limits.

Here’s what could happen:

Nursing may no longer qualify as a “professional degree.”
Post-baccalaureate nursing students could receive half the amount of federal loans given to other medical graduate programs.
APRN students — including NPs, CNMs, CRNAs, and CNSs — may face major financial barriers to completing their education.
Entry into the nursing workforce could decline dramatically.

This is part of the One Big Beautiful Bill Act, an effort to control student debt — but the unintended harm to nursing is enormous.

Why This Is Devastating for Nurses and Healthcare

1. This Will Shrink the Nursing Pipeline

Nursing education is expensive, intensive, and absolutely essential. If students cannot access adequate loans:

fewer people will enter the profession,
fewer RNs will advance their education, and
APRN pathways will become inaccessible to many.

At a time when the U.S. is already facing extreme staffing shortages, this is a dangerous setback.

2. Nurses’ Identity and Professional Standing Are at Stake

Classifying nursing as “not a profession” sends a harmful, demoralizing message:

“Your work does not require the same level of expertise as other healthcare professionals.”

This is not only false — it is insulting.

Nursing requires:

rigorous academic training
advanced clinical reasoning
evidence-based practice
leadership and autonomy
national exams and licensure
ongoing continuing education

Nurses are clinicians, educators, researchers, and leaders.

To erase that through policy is damaging to how nurses see themselves and how healthcare systems value them.

3. This Will Worsen Burnout and Nurse Wellbeing

If fewer nurses enter the field, those who remain will shoulder even heavier workloads.

This will deepen:

burnout
moral distress
mental health struggles
turnover
patient safety risks

The nursing workforce cannot sustain further erosion.

“Nursing is not only a profession — it is the backbone of the U.S. healthcare system.”

CODE YOU Stands With the ANA in Defending Nursing

At CODE YOU, our mission is to strengthen the wellbeing of nurses through wholistic education and supportive community. We see firsthand the deep toll burnout and staffing shortages take on nurses and their families.

We firmly stand with the American Nurses Association in urging the Department of Education to revise this proposal. Nursing must be included in the definition of professional degree programs.

Nurses deserve respect, access, and recognition — not barriers.

Take Action: Sign the Petition and Advocate for Nursing

Below is the statement included in the ANA petition:

**“We, the undersigned, are writing to express our concern regarding the Department of Education's proposed definition of 'professional degree' programs, which excludes nursing.

Nurses are the largest healthcare profession in the U.S., and APRNs fill critical gaps in patient care. Access to robust education pathways, including federal student loans, is essential to sustaining the workforce.

We call on the Department of Education to revise the proposed definition of 'professional degrees' to explicitly include nursing.”**